Parking facilities are very common in major cities and metropolitan areas. After parking a vehicle in a parking facility, people sometimes have difficulty finding their vehicle when they return to the parking facility. Moreover, if the parking facility contains multiple floors, then people can become frustrated when they have to walk up and down many flights of stairs in search of their vehicle. Therefore, a need exists in the art for a method for locating a vehicle in a parking facility.
The prior art has previously addressed the problem of locating a vehicle. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,489,921 (the '921 patent) entitled “Vehicle Locating Apparatus” discloses a method for determining the location of a vehicle in a parking facility. The method in the '921 patent uses Global Positioning System (GPS) satellites to determine the location of the vehicle. Indeed, the prior art includes several different patents in which GPS satellites are used to locate the position of a vehicle. Further examples of these patents include U.S. Pat. No. 6,489,897 entitled “Vehicle Location System” and U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,125 entitled “Parked Vehicle Locator.”
The GPS-based prior art vehicle locators have many problems that are specific to parking facilities. One problem with GPS based systems is that vehicles must be equipped with a GPS receiver, which can be very expensive for the vehicle owners. A second problem is that GPS receivers require a direct line of sight to a plurality of GPS satellites in order to operate accurately. While line of sight is not usually a problem in open areas, the accuracy of the GPS system diminishes when the user is in close proximity to a plurality of tall buildings, such as those found in many downtown or metropolitan areas. The tall buildings limit the number of GPS satellites that are within line of sight of the GPS receiver. The GPS system becomes completely inoperative if the user enters a below ground parking facility. A third problem with GPS based systems is that the GPS satellites have also been disabled for maintenance, national security, and other reasons. When the GPS satellites are disabled, the user is unable to locate his vehicle. Therefore, a need exists for a method for determining the location of a vehicle which is not dependent on the GPS satellite system.
Even when the vehicle location system is not GPS based, parking facilities can offer unique challenges to vehicle locator systems. For example, if the parking facility is located below ground level, the ground can prevent transmission of radio frequency (RF) and other signals from the parking facility to external devices. Furthermore, if the parking facility is constructed out of reinforced concrete, the reinforcing material in the concrete can prevent transmission of RF and other signals between levels of the parking facility. Therefore, a need exists in the art for a method for locating a vehicle in a parking facility that is located below ground or in a reinforced concrete parking facility.
Another problem with parking facilities is the need for increased vehicle security. People tend to leave their vehicles unattended for extended periods in a parking facility, which creates an increased opportunity for theft, vandalism, or other damage to the vehicle. Security patrols reduce the likelihood of these types of crimes, but do not eliminate them. The effectiveness of the security patrols would be increased if the security patrol were given notification that a vehicle was being tampered with. Therefore, a need exists in the art for a method for notifying a security patrol that a vehicle is being tampered with.
Even when the parking facility is an attended or valet parking facility, the parking facility operators need to be aware of the location of the vehicle at all times. If one of the parking facility operators legitimately moves the vehicle from one location to another, the parking facility operators need to be aware of the authorized movement and the new location of the vehicle. Because the parking facility operators are responsible for the vehicle while it is at the attended or valet parking facility, the parking facility operators need to be able to discern between authorized and unauthorized movement of the vehicle. Therefore, a need exists for a method for determining the location of a vehicle and detecting authorized and unauthorized movement of the vehicle.
Consequently, a need exits in the art for a method for locating a vehicle in a parking facility. A need also exists for a method for determining the location of a vehicle which is not dependent on the GPS satellite system. The need extends to a method for locating a vehicle in a parking facility that is located below ground or in a reinforced concrete parking facility. The need also extends to a vehicle locator method that notifies a security patrol that a vehicle is being tampered with. Finally, a need exists for a vehicle location method that detects authorized and unauthorized movement of the vehicle.